Western Australian Current Acts Western Australian Current Acts (1) If, in the case of
a relevant thing which is seized or acquired and detained under section 26
—
(a) a
police officer is satisfied that no person will be tried with the commission
of an offence in relation thereto, and it has not been destroyed under
subsection (4), the police officer shall —
(i)
cause that relevant thing to be destroyed in accordance
with the regulations; or
(ii)
if a person who is authorised by or under this Act, the
Medicines and Poisons Act 2014 or the Voluntary Assisted Dying Act 2019 to
have possession thereof is entitled to have possession of that relevant thing,
release that relevant thing to that person;
or
(b) a
person is tried with the commission of an offence in relation thereto and it
has not been destroyed under subsection (4), the court which so tries the
person shall, whether or not the person is convicted of that offence and after
having given any other person (in this paragraph called the claimant )
claiming to be authorised by or under this Act, the
Medicines and Poisons Act 2014 or the Voluntary Assisted Dying Act 2019 to
have possession thereof and to be entitled to have possession of that relevant
thing, an opportunity to show cause why that relevant thing should be released
to him, order that that relevant thing —
(i)
be released to the claimant; or
(ii)
be destroyed; or
(iii)
be forfeited to the Crown.
(2) If, in relation to
any relevant thing seized under section 26, the Commissioner is satisfied that
—
(a) it
is not reasonably practicable (for whatever reason) to detain the thing until
it is dealt with under subsection (1); and
(b)
sufficient samples have been taken of or from the thing,
the Commissioner may
direct that the thing (apart from the samples) be destroyed before it is dealt
with under that subsection.
(3) A direction shall
be in writing in the prescribed form.
(4) If the
Commissioner directs under subsection (2) that any thing be destroyed, a
police officer shall as soon as practicable cause the thing to be destroyed in
accordance with the regulations.
(5) The Commissioner
may in writing amend or revoke a direction before effect is given to it.
(6A) If —
(a) a
court convicts a person of an offence under this Act that involved the
possession or use of a relevant thing; and
(b) the
relevant thing was destroyed under this section,
the court may order
the person to pay the costs reasonably incurred by the State in destroying the
thing, other than costs relating to the employment of police officers or the
use of equipment or facilities under the control or management of the
Commissioner.
(6) In this section
—
relevant thing means a prohibited drug, prohibited
plant or dangerous substance or a thing contaminated with a dangerous
substance;
sufficient samples means —
(a) in
the case of a thing that has already been analysed or examined by an approved
analyst or an approved botanist, sufficient samples to enable any further
analysis or examination that might be required under section 27A; or
(b) in
any other case, sufficient samples to enable —
(i)
analysis or examination by an approved analyst or an
approved botanist; and
(ii)
any further analysis or examination that might be
required under section 27A.
[Section 27 amended: No. 44 of 1995 s. 8; No. 44
of 2010 s. 7; No. 13 of 2014 s. 175; No. 27 of 2019 s. 186.]